Day 37 - Serengeti

The final day in the Serengeti started early. After breakfast we loaded our gear into the 4x4s and set out across the Serengeti searching for animals.

We were lucky early with our first lion sighting. We'd just driven past a campaign breakfast in the bush for some early morning balloonists. The two lionesses were up and about & were heading for the breakfast table. We didn't hang around to see how it ended but there was nothing in the papers so I guess it turned out OK.

The day's drive would take us to the southern gate of the park and beyond through farmland en-route to the Ngorongoro crater.

 Along the way we were still in full animal spotting mode and with my eye trained in I spotted a cheetah far off at the edge of the long grass. Once we pulled up and had a closer look we realised there were in fact three of these wonderful cats. You can see from these photos how well they are camouflaged in the grass. They lay around for quite a while only peering over the tall grass at the grazing animals coming ever closer. Eventually a troop of baboons started closing in on the cheetahs who thought better of standing their ground and being involved in a fight.

Initially I had figured that the cats were three adult brothers. As they came closer to the car we saw that they were instead a mother with two near full grown cubs, a male and a female.

Once the cheetahs moved away from the long grass the zebra stopped eating and instead kept a close eye on the cats. Cheetahs aren't normally a threat to zebra, but the striped grazers are wary of all cats.

The cheetahs were starting to become distressed with the zebra shadowing them on their right and a string of vehicles leapfrogging each other blocking their escape route to their left.

I complained to our driver Luis and guide Moses about the vehicles blocking the cats. Our two drivers pulled up side by side and stopped any cars going any further. The cheetah mum led her cubs across the road and away from the angry zebra. I really don't like seeing people impacting on wild animal behavior particularly when the animals are clearly stressed.

Shortly after the cats were in the clear again the young male took off chasing after the gazelle at the edge of the long grass. His inexperience meant that the gazelle were onto him early and he gave up the chase nearly as soon as it started. It was a bit of excitement for us.

We left the cheetahs to their peace and quiet and set off to look for more animals.

Beside the creek just near the cheetahs a couple of male giraffes battling each other for dominance. They use their heads like a mace battering their opponent with their short horns. To watch them it looks like its happening in slow motion. 

The small creek attracts wildlife due to the water & the trees that flank it. We spotted a White Tailed Kite in a tree. These are a closely related to the black winged kites in Australia.

We also came across yet another antelope species, a Reed Buck (above). These guys like swampy conditions with the lush green chutes much like the water buck. They are much smaller than the water buck.

 The water of course attracts any number of water birds. The red billed ducks (above) & the black winged stilts (below) were just the start.

Our last cheetah sighting for the trip was by no means the pick of them. There were two adult brothers on the top of a termite mound way off in the heat haze (above). Our next cat sighting was much more impressive.

What's the big deal about a few cars under an acacia you ask? Well wedged in the second fork from the bottom of the tree was the same leopard we'd seen two days previous.... Asleep...

She wasn't completely asleep. Every now and then the noise of the vehicles or the people in them would rouse her.

 

Luis moved the truck around to the opposite side of the tree when the leopard shifted position. We got a good look at her belly. Her cubs mush have been due any day. It would make sense because it would be timed with the migration arriving in that part of the park. Leopards are the most secretive & mysterious of the cats but down deep much like any cat sleeping most of the day away.

We saw a lioness not far from where the leopard was sleeping in the tree surrounded by tourist vehicles. She had a radio collar like the one from the previous day. At least she was awake & moving about.

It was time to leave the central Serengeti and set off for the Ngorogoro crater many miles to the south. We traveled along the main road to the Southern gate across the comparatively flat treeless grass plains that make up most of the southern half of the park. Once we had cleared the central area near our camp we hardly saw an animal. The rains hadn't reached that far south so the grass was still parched so the zebra, wildebeest and gazelle had no interest in it. They would come weeks later after the rain had regenerated the landscape.

There's a small hill about half way to the gate. It's the highest point for miles so we could look out over the plains.

Flat isn't it?

A long drive and not far from the gate is a larger rocky outcrop called Naabi Hill where we'd stop for lunch. Even though it's not quite at the border of the park, the ranger station is located in the small lodge village at the base of the hill. It is like an island in an ocean of dry grass. The birds and small animals were clinging to this atoll. The most interesting character was the Pink-and-blue Agama (below). You'd think a child had got to it with a paint set.

 

After lunch we took the short walk to the top of the hill. From there we could see right the way back to the larger hills at the centre of the park (below) and in all directions.

From Naabi Hill it was a short drive out of the park and back into Maasai farm land.